Singh crosses the finish line

One-hundred-year-old Fauja Singh, ran an entire marathon in Toronto this weekend.

The devout Sikh shrugs it off — noting he’s run 10 others, reports Eric Adelson for the Post Game:

He did it in 8 hours, 25 minutes, and 17 seconds. That’s even more remarkable. But consider that Singh started running competitively only after losing his wife and son 11 years ago, at age 89.

Singh found something, and he put his whole heart into it. He didn’t want to simply make it to 100. He didn’t settle for a piece of cake and a nap. He wanted to break a record. And he did. Singh wasn’t just the first centenarian ever to run 26.2 miles. He beat five other runners. He’s now in the Guinness Book of World Records.

And he did it with a sense of humor, wearing a T-shirt that read “Sikhs in the City.”

Only days before his historic feat, he accomplished something just as incredible: He set eight world age group records in one day — running the 100 meters in 23.14, the 200 meters in 52.23, the 400 metres in 2:13.48, the 800 meters in 5:32.18, the 1500 meters in 11:27.81, the mile in 11:53.45, the 3000 meters in 24:52.47 and the 5000 meters in 49:57.39.

Singh told Adelson, “I won’t stop running until I die.”

More from Beliefnet and our partners
Close Ad